a painter´s attempt to conquer the great white canvas

The Changing Seasons – February 2019

Writing this post, I noticed that the main activities I seem to have been concentrating on, were crocheting/knitting and baking(=eating).

To be honest, this pretty much sums it up. 😉

Since it’s still winter around here, most of the things I do tend to take place inside, where it’s warm and cosy.

As to the baking and eating part – yeah, there´s lots of that too, as you will see. 😉

Amigurumi

Already started at the end of January but completed at the beginning of February was this little baby blue elephant.

Amigurumi elefant (Febr. 2019)

This one was quite a challenge as I had to seamlessly join the four legs to then crotchet the body, all in one part.

Patience seems to be the major part when it comes to crocheting these little amigurumi animals.

Amigurumi elefant (Febr. 2019)

And it’s so lovely to have them all together, keeping me company when I’m working at my desk…

Family of Three – amigurumi Llama, elephant and fox (Fear. 2019)

Baking Fever

German television is providing us with a huge amount of baking shows at the moment, even VIP’s are doing it – and are actually surprisingly good at it too.

Having discovered my love for homemade sourdough bread last year, I usually do one loaf a week.

Most of the time I add a cup of sunflower seeds, or roasted walnuts which both give the bread a lovely flavor, especially when toasted.

Sourdough bread (Febr. 2019)

The funny thing is, no matter how often I already did this, every once in a while the bread doesn’t rise at the prepared cuts on the upside, but decides to do it its way:

Lovely if somewhat surprising crust at the side of the sourdough bread (Fear. 2019)

The television shows however made me want to leave my comfort zone of baking and try something new – I’m talking fancy cakes!

Alright, I’m the first to admit that my Black Forest Gateau can’t really compete with what those pâtissiers or pastry chefs can do BUT: it really tastes soooo good! 😉

Yum Yum! Eh… I mean: Black Forest Gateau 😉 (Febr. 2019)

I did this cake last Sunday – and there are only two pieces left!! (Okay, I did have some help, but not much. 😉 )

Detail Black Forest Gateau (Febr. 2019)

Knitting and Felting

I’ve done it before and very likely will do it again because it’s a lot of fun and a wonderful way to keep warm – felting.

It’s quite easy too, just buy some virgin wool in the color of your choice and start knitting. Take care to knit whatever you have in mind almost double in size because once you felt it in your washing machine, it will shrink to about 60 or 70 % of the original.

Because the last pair of slippers that I knit-felted almost two years ago, were about to become threadbare from constant wearing, it was time to make another one. (Click here if you’re curious to see the first pair and/or here if you want to know how you can show your laptop the love it deserves. 😉 )

Knitted slippers yet to be felted (Febr. 2019)

It’s always amazing – and a bit frightening too! – how much the knitted parts shrink in your washing machine. I added my pen to the photos to give you some kind of scale.

Knitted and felted slippers (Febr. 2019)

If you look up close, you can still see the knitting…

Felted slippers detail (Febr. 2019)

Felted slippers detail (Febr. 2019)

And more Amigurumi…

Because it’s so much fun and I don’t seem to be able to stop, I did another amigurumi at the end of February, this time a koala!

Amigurumi koala (Febr. 2019)

I’m planning to do a little amigurumi koala baby next month to keep it company and maybe even a little tree to which Mama koala can cling on.

Post navigation

75 thoughts on “The Changing Seasons – February 2019”

Your knitted animals make me squeak with joy, Sarah. It brings back a precious memory of our last cat Toffee when she was a kitten. I brought home a knitted witch (with a broom!) to celebrate Halloween and she ran off with it even though Nanny Ogg was bigger than her.

You have really been busy!! I love all your little crocheted critters. Making a baby koala could be a challenge. Working smaller is sometimes harder. I would love bread in any shape or form it came in and the cake wouldn’t last the week with just me in the house. I’d probably hide it so I didn’t have to share the one you just made. It looks lushious! You really have to make the slippers a lot too big to be able to felt them and still wear them, I would think. So cozy looking. Have a good week and a great March.

Thank you very much, Marlene! You’re right, working smaller is definitely harder but I think I did. Baby koala is now happily united with its mama. 😊 Still need to crotchet that tree though! 😁
And I WAS tempted to hide that cake. 😉
Have a lovely new week and a wonderful March ahead!

You have been up to so much in February, Sarah! You really can make amigurumi and make it so well! All of them look sooo cute and they look perfect, like no stray pieces of yarn and well stuffed 😊 I still am watching YouTube videos on how to crotchet and hope my pieces come out half as good as yours. You make it seem so easy lol.

You can also bake bread and cake. Usually I like sourdough but a lot of sourdough I’ve had in Australia is way to hard for my liking, like rock 😞 Black Forest Gateau is my favourite cake and I must say yours is good looking, can definitely compete with the one in the shops – if not win hands down because home-made cakes are made with time and love and these are the best ingredients to make anyone happy 😊

Thank you so much, Mabel!! 😀 ❤ And I'm 100% sure your amigurumi will look awesome!! Please let me know when you've finished your first one and are willing to share, I'd love to see it!! 😀
It's a funny thing you'v mentioned sourdough bread sometimes being too hard, the first ones I made about half a year ago were too. They started to get better once I started to add sunflower seeds, but I really don't know why that is. Or maybe it's just that with age the sourdough starter gets better and better, mine smells like apple cider. 😉 Maybe you should start making your own bread too, I find it tastes a lot better than the stuff you can buy and also you know what's in it which is very reassuring. And it's much easier than it sounds!
Totally agree – time and love are the best ingredients to make anyone happy. 😉
Have a fabulous weekend! 😀 ❤

I think I will start of crotcheting a small square and then progress to amigurumi and let you know how I go 😀

I love apple cider – so I am sure I will love your sourdough bread. You probably discovered the secret to making amazing sourdough bread 😀 I really like making my own food and making it fresh. So much healthier knowing what’ in it. You have a fabulous weekend too ❤

You are so talented and creative Sarah. It’s amazing! I just love your Amigurumi and I’m glad you enjoy doing them because It’s a pleasure to see what you’ll come up next. I love them all. Your fox and elephant are my favourites. The Black Forest Gateau does look pretty good but it is your bread that got my attention. Ohh – it seems so delicious. It wouldn’t last more than two days in my house! xoxo

Thank you so much for your lovely comment, Dominique! If I wasn’t as mistrustful of the post as I I had to become, I’d instantly send you the amigurumi elephant and fox!! As it is, this will have to wait for when I come to visit you in Montreal. 😉
Have a fabulous and creative weekend, dear friend! Hugs&love! xoxo ❤

You really are amazingly talented! I love those little animals, but how you manage to do them without seams is beyond me. And if it makes you feel any better, I would have had several slices of that black forest cake too….it’s my favorite!

Hehe! You can bet that I’m rewarding myself with lots of cakes after the crafting bit, Iris! 😉 Thanks so much for you lovely comment! I knew the koala would catch your eye. 😉
Have a wonderful and creative weekend! 😀 xoxo ❤

I am constantly awed by your creativity and skills Sarah. Your amigurumi are sooooo lovely and clever. I love that you showed close-ups so I can see just how complex they are. I’m glad I don’t really like creamy cakes or I would be totally drooling. Your bread has me salivating; especially as my last loaves were a bit of a disaster.
I’d forgotten how cool your felted slippers are, so it’s nice to see another pair.
Wishing you a creative and fun month ahead.
xxxxxx

Aww – thank you so much, Su! Crocheting these amigurumi isn’t actually that hard, what’s difficult is the tininess of it all! 😂 And you have to keep counting all the time or your piece would quickly become a disaster – which is what happened to my a lot when I started. 😉 So doing it while watching TV for instance can be a bit tricky. 😉
Wishing you a wonderful weekend, and hope that the next loafs are going to be their normally dependable self – meaning: just salivatingly yummy! 😀 xxxxxxxx

Your little amigurumi family is adorable, Sarah. What a treat to have those little animals to keep you company. I’m impressed with the elephant’s legs! And the felted slippers – that might be something I could do, maybe… I do love your baking to the point of drooling. I used to bake my own bread and the hubby and I would eat the whole loaf the minute it came out of the oven! Lol. Honest! ❤

Thank you so much, Diana! 😀
Hehe! I can imagine you and your husband eating your bread the minute it came out of the oven – it’s just what I do too! There’s something magic about fresh baked bread, isn’t there?
Those slippers are really easy to make, and I’m sure you#d love wearing them, they’re so comfy and warm, perfect for hours of work at your desk. 😉
Have a beautiful weekend! ❤

This is such a happy and inspiring post, Sarah, I enjoyed every photo and sentence. Your amigurumi family is adorable. I can see from the side view why the elephant was so difficult. Do you follow a pattern or make up your own? Your little koala is posed in front of a sculpture that seems to be a seated person – are you willing to post a photo of this? Looks so intriguing.

Can you felt crochet as well as knitted things? I imagine you can, and the felt results look comfy and warm.

As for baking – your products are worthy of a bakery. I’m famous for noticing the cup of sugar left on the tabletop after my creation is half baked, given new meaning to the phrase “half baked.” I’ll stick with stews and soups – cooked long enough, it’s hard to mess them up.

Thank you so much, Shari, I’ so happy you found this post a happy and inspiring one! 😀
I use patterns for the amigurumi but am now confident enough that I think I might get it down without one. At least that’s what I’m hoping for! 😉
And I think you could felt crocheted things just as well as knitted ones, it might be even tighter and thus warmer!

There’s always been a part of me that dreamed of having my own café+bakery. Maybe one day. 😉

When I look at the wonderful creations baled and knitted I must say that your winter is well spent. I love especially those crocheted creatures, but would not mind getting a bite of this delicious looking cake. Have a great day, Sarah!

I love, love, love your new little amigurumi friends! (I am in awe of your crocheting skills.) I have the pattern for the slippers and have made several pairs, but I’d never heard of the felting technique to make them thicker and warmer.

Aww – thank you so much, Liz! 😄
You really should try felt the slippers too, they keep so much warmer and also are much more endurable this way. Just remember to only take virgin wool and knit the piece much larger than normal. Then simply put it into your washing machine together with a big towel or a pair of jeans to support the felting process. 😊

Sarah, you’ve had an incredibly productive month. Well done you. What an absolute delight your little animals are. You are so clever. The koala is adorable. I’ve still got a grin on my face. I look forward to seeing the whole set with baby and gum tree.

Speaking of eating too much, you should make a little amigurumi fat rat with a black forest cake. I just saw the little rat who got rescued from the drain on the news. Someone ought to turn that story into a children’s book.
PS. I love the slippers too.

Thanks so much, Tracy! How awesome that you’ve heard about that rat!! I saw it in the news yesterday and am so glad it was rescued. 😄 Who could turn their back on a creature in need of help? Isn’t it lovely to know that there are good news too? 😊

All art work, photographs, stories and texts published on Secret Art Expedition is by me - Miss Gentileschi/Sarah - unless otherwise stated.
The pictures on this site are for my and your pleasure but are copyrighted.
If you would like use a copy of one, please e-mail me.
(You´ll find the adress in the about section.)